Sligo's son
by Comedygirl127
Summary: ok, this is the SEQUEL to Revenge Sligo style, so don't read unless you rad the other one, or it may not make sense! so, yes, Sligo has a son... and i almost called it something else, for i have yet another awesome idea to put in. RnR-rated T in case. XD
1. Back to School again

**This story is for Phasmidfan, without him, there would not be a sequel. You rock! Ps, sorry about the weirdness of Winter's reactions to everything… however, she would've been in a kind of shock, and really confused on what side Cal was on. I just was almost asleep at the times of writing those bits, and my mind sorta went hay-wire! It's happened before, I told 3 different people I wrote and posted a 6th chapter of a story, but I hadn't even written it.**

**If you see odd bits like that, I love hearing it, all reviews are cool, even the negative ones. You are my only reviewer so far, reviewing 7 times XD, and every one of them has something nice to say.**

**Oh, and yes, I actually posted chapters 1, 2, 3, 4 and 5 at the same time. I wrote them all, but was lazy and didn't post, until I was starting chap 6. And also, revenge is the only one I haven't read…**

Chapter 1 – Back to school again

"Mum! Why do we have to go back to school? It's not fair, I just got used to the all-day interviews!" complained Ryan, as mum forced us to try on our old clothes, throwing out whatever no longer fit us.

"Oh come on! YOU were the one complaining about the interviews the most!" said mum, clearly not giving in, after at least ten attempts already. My turn to beg…

"Hey, didn't you say we wouldn't start until next year anyway? Why are we starting now?"

"Because… I think it would be good for you to take a break, and get back into a normal life with some of your old friends." She sounded like she was making it up on the spot, and I raised an eyebrow at her.

"Come on Ryan, you too Cal. Winter and Boges are both going back to school, and you'd have a lot of the same classes together," said Ezekiel.

"Ezekiel is right boys. Now, time for bed. It's already 9:30pm." Mum stood up and dusted herself off, before picking up the bag of old clothes and leaving. Ezekiel followed her out; and Scottie was probably downstairs, after already tucking in Gabbi.

Ryan and I got changed and climbed into bed. When we had bought back our house, and Ryan moved in with us, mum tore down the wall between my room and the spare room, giving Ryan and I plenty of space. Ryan lay back, staring at the ceiling, thinking to pass the time where he couldn't sleep.

"What are you thinking about tonight?" I asked him.

"Huh? Oh, just tomorrow. I was thinking about how I wouldn't know anyone."

"What about Boges and Winter? I think even Griff will be there…"

"Yeah, but what if I'm not in your classes? I've never really been good at making new friends." I could tell he wasn't sure, and it bugged me that he doubted himself.

"What are you talking about? You're the best little brother I could hope for!" I joked. He laughed, and I felt some of the pressure lift from my chest. I mean, he had just found out he was a twin, who's brother, at the time of finding out, was a wanted criminal, and he had a little sister who was in a coma, as well as an evil uncle, who was the reason we never knew each other. It was tough for him now to be going to school where he didn't know anyone.

"Cal, I'm only a few minutes younger than you!"

"Still my _little_ brother!" He threw his pillow at me, and I caught it, laying it on top of mine and resting my head.

"Hey! Give that back!"

"Shh! You'll wake up mum! Haha." He jumped off his bed and ran over to mine, yanking his pillow out from under my head. As soon as he had it, he whacked me over the head with it, before returning to his bed. We were silent for a few minutes, before he spoke up.

"So, tell me… Are you and Winter going out?" I raised my eyebrow at him and he laughed again. "What? I deserve to know!"

"If you must, I really like her, and I think she likes me too. But I'm not sure you could say we're dating." I like the talks we get sometimes, telling each other what life had been like before meeting each other. I have learnt a lot about who Ryan is, and I've found that we are really alike. He has a lot of the same sporting interests as I do, and he gets along with my friends really well too. So I can understand if he'd be interested in my relationships with other people. Especially Winter.

Speaking of Winter… I haven't really spoken to her since that night in the hospital…

…_Mum smiled at me, before kissing my forehead and leaving with Ezekiel and Scottie. Boges and Ryan gave me high-fives, before following them out as well, but Winter stayed behind._

"_What's up?" I asked. She came and sat on the bed, as close to me as she could, without actually sitting on me._

"_I remember." With that, she kissed my forehead… and jogged out the door before I could say anything…_

And that had happened just after being told it was all a dream. I knew she was probably avoiding me, not wanting to have to answer the questions she knew I had. Suddenly I realised Ryan just spoke.

"Sorry, what was that? I zoned out there for a minute."

"I said she's really pretty, and I've seen the looks she gives you, as if you're the only guy in the world worth wasting time with."

"_Wasting_ time?"

"Haha, chill dude, or you'll wake mum…" My turn to throw the pillow. Lucky for me though, he threw it back rather than keeping it like I had. He lay back on his pillow again, and I did the same. It was getting late, so I decided to go to sleep.

"Goodnight Ryan."

"Goodnight Cal." I closed my eyes, and drifted off to sleep…

…

_Dogs… barking… images of a small white mouse flashed across my vision… I heard yelling… it sounded like… like Viper and Harry… Sligo was yelling… more barking… Ezekiel was shouting orders… a gunshot rung out…_

…

I sat up straight, sweat dripping down my face. I saw Ryan leaning over me, a worried expression on his face.

"Cal? Are you ok? You were shaking in your sleep, tossing from side to side," he asked, passing me a glass of water.

"Just a dream. What's the time?"

"5:30, but it was not just a dream. It was much worse, tell me what it was about."

"I don't know. It was like a memory, but a memory of that crazy dream I had in the hospital. I couldn't move or speak, or even see! But I could hear it all, and occasionally I saw an image of a white mouse."

"Holy-" He ran his hand through his hair, blowing out an exhausted breath. Which was odd, for he wasn't the one who had the dream…? Oh well, I guess that's one thing I may not understand about him. I shook the idea out of my head, and skulled the water, before standing up.

After a nice, warm shower I felt much better. I jogged down the stairs, and caught a snippet of a conversation between Ryan, Ezekiel and my mum.

"Mum, he's having flashbacks. It's tormenting him either way," said Ryan, sounding worried.

"Yes, but it would just be worse if he knew. He wouldn't sleep at all, and wouldn't be able to walk down the street without checking over his shoulder," said mum, in her 'this argument is over and you know I've won' voice.

"Still-"

"Ryan, Win, please, this isn't the time to discuss it," said Ezekiel, scrapping my chance of working out what was going on. I walked out from behind the wall, as if I just got here, and all three pairs of eyes turned to me.

"Am I interrupting?" I asked innocently.

"Uh, no, it's fine. Toast?" said mum, passing me a plate of vegemite toast. I smiled and took the plate, but inside I knew it wasn't fine. I had a feeling they were talking about me… Ezekiel grabbed out the juice from the fridge, and poured six glasses. he passed one to me, Ryan and mum, before taking one himself. I guessed the others were for Gabbi and Scottie.

By the time we had finished getting ready for school, it was 7:00, and I heard a knock at the door. I ran out to answer it, and saw Winter and Boges ready and waiting.

"Gabs! Ryan! C'mon, Boges and Winter are here!" I heard their footsteps coming down the entrance hall, and in a few seconds the five of us were ready to go.

"Cal, are we walking today?" asked Gabbi.

"Yep, but it'll be fun with all of us together!" I said, hoping she wouldn't be upset by the walk.

"Ok." She grabbed Winter's hand, and the two of them began heading off down the street. Boges and Ryan immediately started chatting, but I was lost in thought. What had they been talking about? Was it about me? Ryan said: 'he's having flashbacks'. Did that mean my dream? Oh well. Suddenly I realised Gabbi was calling my name.

"Cal? Hello?"

"Sorry Gabs. I was just thinking."

"What about?" Her innocent eyes drove into me. I hesitated.

"Um, just school. I was… uh… thinking how bad it would be if we were all in different classes." She smiled.

"Cal, mum told the school she wanted you guys to be in as many of the same classes as possible. Because you've had a rough year, Ryan just found out he's got a twin, Boges' been forced to lie to police to cover you, and Winter just learnt her 'guardian' killed her parents. You need each other to back each other up."

"Yeah, I know."

"Cal, Gabs? Not to ruin your little chat, but we'll be late for class if we don't get a move on," said Boges, checking his watch.

"Alright. C'mon Gabs, you're right, I have nothing to worry about." We walked the rest of the way in silence, apart from Gabbi and Winter occasionally humming some of Gabbi's favourite songs.

Soon enough, we made it to the front gates of the school. The others began heading up to the classrooms. I took Gabbi's hand and led her to the year 5 area.

Just as I was leaving, heading back towards the others, someone grabbed my arm. At first I thought it was Gabbi, so I turned around to tell her that she had to stay here, but it wasn't. I ripped my arm from the strangers' grasp, jumping back.

"Whoa! Sorry dude, I didn't mean to scare you! I was wondering where I'm s'posed to go…?" He looked familiar somehow...

"Um, do I know you?" I asked, searching his face.

"Uh, I don't think so... I'm new to this school. I've been staying with my mum, but she's had some financial trouble, so I have to stay with my dad. He's a cop."

"Oh. Ok then. Our classes are this way, I'm Cal."

"Joshua." We shook hands and continued down the path to Winter, Ryan and Boges. I was trying to work out who he reminded me of, when I heard Griff call out to me.

"Yo Cal! Or Ryan, I'm not so sure…" He came up to me and I gave him a high-five.

"Nah, you got it right. Ryan is checking the class lists with Boges and Winter."

"Got it. I heard you were in the hospital… care to explain?"

"Uh, I just fainted and whacked my head. I think I gave myself a bit of a concussion…"

"You were in the hospital? Are you ok now?" asked Joshua. I almost forgot he was there.

"Huh? Oh, yeah I'm fine. Griff, this is Joshua, Joshua this is Griff Kirby." I said.

"Nice to meet you Josh," said Griff, shaking Joshua's hand.

"Yeah, you too. Um, who's Ryan?"

"He's my twin brother. We're identical." I could see Joshua was interested, but it wasn't that big of a deal. What I've gone through in the last two years is though…

"Hey Cal, who's your friend?" said Boges, coming to stand by my side.

"Joshua. Joshua Thomson," said Joshua.

"Cool. I'm Boges." They shook hands.

"'Sup Boges?" said Griff, and they high-fived each other.

"Not much. Haven't seen you in a while, how's life?"

"Yeah… it's ok." There was an awkward silence for a few minutes, and I was relieved when the bell rang.

"Oh, Boges, I didn't get to see what class I'm in!" I said.

"Don't worry dude, you're with us. So is Griff."

"Cool, I'll see you two later then." Griff walked off, in the direction of homeroom.

"Um, I have to go. I have to go with my dad to meet the principal. He wanted me to look around first though, so that's why I'm out here," said Joshua.

"Ok. I might see you at break, unless we're in the same class," I said. He waved before walking off, and Boges and I started heading toward homeroom.

When we got there, Winter and Ryan signalled for us to hurry. The class was already in, and the teacher was writing his name on the board in large, loopy letters. We rushed forward, taking our seats next to the others. The teacher turned around, a man probably in his late 30's to early 40's.

"Ok, my name, as you may have noticed, is Mr. Leo, and I'll be you're homeroom, English and Social studies teacher. Now, no talking while I call the role." As Mr. Leo began calling names, I felt a piece of paper slide into my hand. Looking beside me, I saw Winter pointing to it with her eyes, so I opened it up and read it.

_He looks like a noob!_

I smiled, and almost missed my name as he called it.

"Callum? Callum Ormond?" he said, looking around the room.

"Here sir," I answered.

"Ok, Ryan? Ryan Ormond?" he continued.

"Yep," said Ryan.

"Huh? Callum, are you and Ryan brothers?"

"Um, yes sir. Twins," I said. Instantly I felt multiple eyes focus upon my brother and I.

"What? You guys never seen identical twins before?" asked Winter, removing me from the awkward moment. Mr. Leo shook his head, trying to focus.

"Ok, back to the role…" he said. I scribbled down a note on the piece of paper.

_Thanks… and LOL!_

She took it and smiled, nodding her head to say 'you're welcome'. Finally Mr. Leo called the last name, Samantha White, and put the role away.

"Harry, could you please hand these out? If you aren't sure who someone is, just say their name and they'll put up their hand," said Mr. Leo, handing a pile of papers to a boy in the front group of desks. He stood up and began calling out names that he read, the other students put up their hand as they heard their name.

From the corner of my eye, I saw Joshua standing by the door with the principal. Mr. Leo seemed to notice as well, and he went over to them. I couldn't hear what they were saying, but I guessed it had something to do with Joshua being in this class. Ryan and Winter had their orientation last week, and Boges and I had been to this school already, so it only took a re-enrolment for us.

Mr. Leo smiled, and looked around the room again, probably for an empty seat. There were three, so he turned back to Joshua and nodded. He said something else I couldn't hear, and Josh hesitated, before looking at the empty seats in turn. Finally, his eyes fell on the one next to Ryan, across from me.

He nodded to Mr. Leo, and he smiled. Josh came up to us and sat down, nodding to Griff and Boges, then hesitating out of me and Ryan.

"Hey, you guys mind if I hang out with you?" he said.

"Nah, it's fine. Everyone, this is Joshua. Josh, this is Winter and Ryan. You met Boges, Griff and I before class," I said, nodding to everyone as I said their name.

"Cool, nice to meet you Josh. What brings you to this school?" said Winter, smiling at the new boy.

"Um, thanks. My mum's had some financial troubles, and so I had to move in with my dad, he's a cop. I haven't seen him since I was seven."

Griff snorted, Winter tried to hold back a laugh, Ryan stared at the desk, trying to hide his face, and Boges was grinning at me. I was just smiling at Joshua.

"What's so funny?" he asked, looking at each of us in turn.

"Cal here has had quite an experience with cops... and I have too, lying to cover his butt," said Boges, still grinning at me.

"I wouldn't be surprised if your dad was one of the cops on his assignment. '_Strike__Force__Predator__'_!" said Winter, laughing.

"What? Why were the cops after you?" asked Josh, looking surprised.

"Um, my uncle framed me for shooting him... and putting my little sister in a coma. He wasn't really shot. He attacked Gabbi himself. He's dead now," I said, shaking my head at the memories.

"Whoa, sorry, I didn't mean to intrude-"

"No, I'm glad he's dead. He tried to kill Ryan and I when we were kids, and it resulted in Ryan being given to another lady, who had no idea who he really was," I said, cutting him off. "He... um... killed my dad too. Poisoned him. The cops dropped all charges on me when I got a video confession from him, just before he died."

Boges whipped out his mobile, showing the video to Joshua. A few minutes later he sat back, running his hand through his hair.

"THAT was your uncle? He was crushed to death!"

"Shh, keep your voice down Josh. We're still in class," said Ryan. Joshua was quiet, but his spooked expression remained.

"Look, he got what he deserved, and that's that. Got it? No more on this subject, it creeps me out. Worst year ever," I said, as a shiver crept down my spine.

"Um, ok. So... you and Ryan...? You really are _identical_ twins, hey?" he said, changing the subject.

"Yeah. My original name was 'Samuel', but my mum... the lady I _thought_ was my mum... called me Ryan. So I go by Ryan, because it's the name I'm used to." Joshua nodded, and I'm sure he was glad when the bell finally rang. Boges nodded to me, before standing up and dusting himself off.

"Maths?" he said, as he helped Winter to her feet as well.

"Yep. Coming Joshua?" I said, standing up.

"Ok. As long as we don't continue this weird conversation. I don't get your family at all..." He, Ryan and Griff stood up, and we headed out the door.

"Mine's worse," muttered Winter, staring at the ground as she walked.

"What happened?" asked Joshua, but I shook my head.

"Long story short, she's living with me. I might tell you what happened one day, but it hurts Winter too much," I said. He nodded to say he understood.

"Ok, I probably sound really rude when I say this, but does anyone else think Joshua looks freakily familiar?" said Griff, taking my mind off our horrible lives.

"Yeah, I was just thinking the same thing!" said Boges, looking at Josh.

"Huh? Yeah, you've probably seen my dad around. Mum says I look a lot like him."

"Yeah. I thought I'd seen him before too, but I don't really think I have," I said. We finally reached maths and lined up. Suddenly one of the kids from homeroom, David I think, came up to me.

"Hey, you're that psycho kid, aren't you? Callum Ormond?" he said, eyeing me suspiciously.

"Yeah… why?" I said, returning his gaze.

"How the heck did you dodge those cops for so long? They really hated you!" he said, and started laughing.

"Well, I dunno. I just kept on running. I had some help. Boges lied to them a few times, leading them in another direction, and one time, when I was almost out of luck, Ryan showed up! We switched clothes, and he took off down the street. They couldn't arrest him, because he wasn't me!" I smiled at our success, and at how Ryan had totally saved me that day, not even knowing anything about me.

"Whatever. I was hoping they'd catch you. Now, kids are going around doing stupid things, thinking that if the cops start chasing them, they can just out run them like you did," he said, looking almost disappointed.

"Well, that's a very supportive thing to say. I hadn't even done anything wrong, how could you say 'I wish they caught you'?" I was annoyed. Back when I was still on the run, I expected people to say they want me caught, but after being proved innocent… some people just have no respect.

"Alright class, I'm your maths teacher, Mrs. Anderson. Please come inside, and we can begin our lesson." David glared at me, before following the rest of the class in.

"Just ignore him Cal," said Winter, putting her hand on my shoulder.

"Ok, for you," I said.

"I hate bullies. Especially big bullies, if you know what I mean…" she said.

"Either big in size, or what they do is big, I'm pretty sure I know who." I put my arm around her waist, and we walked into class together.


	2. A cop or not?

**Hey guys! Chap 2 up now. Hope you enjoyed chapter 1, and I love reviews, so feel free to give me some. If you haven't read my first C365 story 'Revenge Sligo style', you probably should, or a lot of this story won't make sense.**

**Oh, one more thing: I looked up 'Singularity' to see what it really means, and I got: somethinguniqueorunusual; characteristic. Then I also got:**

**(Astronomy) a hypothetical region in space in which gravitational forces cause matter to be infinitely compressed and space and time to become infinitely distorted. And:**

**(Mathematics) a point at which a complex function is undefined because it is neither differentiable nor single-valued while the function is defined in every neighbourhood of the point.**

Chapter 2 – A cop… or not..?

"Either big in size, or what they do is big, I'm pretty sure I know who." I put my arm around her waist, and we walked into class together.

"Ok, we have quite a few new students today, so I think the best thing to do is a group assignment. You can get together after school hours, and get to know each other a lot better. How about groups of… three?" said Mrs. Anderson, as she mentally calculated the number of students into small groups.

"Hey Cal, um, could I be in your group?" asked Joshua, biting his lip as he waited to see what my answer was.

"Sure. Winter, want to be with us? Boges, you, Griff and Ryan can be a group. That way we could all meet at our place, and it'd be more like a group of six," I said, making sure I didn't leave anyone out.

"Sounds good dude," said Boges. Griff nodded, and Ryan smiled at me. Winter reached over and held my hand.

"Thanks guys. I think a group of six would make it much easier." Joshua smiled at each of us, before ripping a piece of paper from his book and cutting it into four. "Here's my number, in case you need to call me." He scribbled down his mobile number on each of the pieces, and the rest of us got pieces of paper and did the same so he could ring us as well.

The rest of maths went by in a blur, and Joshua was amazed at how smart Boges was.

"If you think he's good now, wait 'til you see him in science, in fifth period," I said, laughing at his wide eyes and gaping mouth as Boges returned from writing the answer on the board.

"Math's not my best subject…" said Boges, smiling.

"I should have asked to be in your group!" he said.

"Ok class, that's the end of our double. Head on outside for first break, and remember to decide on times to work on your assignment," said Mrs. Anderson, shooing the students from the classroom. We all stood up and walked out, Winter and I holding hands.

"Uh, Winter? Cal? Are you two…" began Joshua. I could see he didn't want to intrude, but also that he didn't want to go making assumptions.

"Dating? Yeah," said Winter, answering my question as well.

"Ok," he said. We walked toward the allocated locker area, and put our stuff away, before grabbing our lunch and heading back to the main yard. We found a large tree to sit under, I'm not sure what type exactly, and Boges instantly lay down, closing his eyes to catch up on some sleep. Griff laughed, and sat on him. He let out a pained breath and shoved him off, before whacking him in the head and lying back down.

"Hey, that calls for a time out!" said Griff, dusting himself off.

"I'm just glad you two get along at all!" I said, laughing. Winter sat with her back to the tree, pulling out a sandwich from her bag. Ryan sat on the grass beside Boges and Griff, and Joshua just stood there as I sat next to Winter. But our calm lunch didn't last long, for David and his gang of 'non-believers' stood over us.

"Hey Psycho Kid, could I talk to you a minute?" he said.

"I'm guessing you mean me?" I said, standing up. He was a few centre meters taller than I was, and my eyes were in line with his chin.

"Follow me." He walked off, and his gang and I all followed him. I recognised two of them. I'd seen them hassling little kids for lunch money last year. The other one I hadn't, and he seemed to not know what to do. Probably the newest member of the gang. David definitely seemed to be the leader.

They led me behind the school block, between the large yard fence and the classrooms. The other three guys moved into position, and two of them, who I will now randomly refer to as Bill and Bob, flanked my sides, while Noob-kid took up the rear end. Yes, I think these nick-names will work perfectly!

Suddenly Bill and Bob ran forward, grabbing my arms, and Noob-kid reached into the bushes, pulling out a baseball bat.

"Um, no thanks. I'm not a fan of baseball," I said calmly.

"We aren't playing baseball," said David, as if I was an idiot.

"No? Then what?" I said, acting surprised.

"I'm gonna do what the cops _should_ have done." He whacked the bat in his palm, making a slapping sound.

"Sounds like fun," I said sarcastically. He rolled his eyes, before swinging at me… hard. Even with Bill and Bob holding me by my arms, I managed to duck just in time. The bat swung through, connecting with Bill's shoulder. The late, unexpected contact sent the bat flying, straight over the fence. Bill dropped to the ground in pain.

As Bob was focusing on his buddy and the lost bat, I swung my foot to the side, tripping him. Almost at the same time, I yanked my arm from his grasp. He fell with a thud, and David was furious. Suddenly Noob-kid jumped on me from behind, trying to choke me. As soon as I had my balance back, I ran backwards, slamming him straight into the wall. When I walked forward again, he was no longer on me.

"Whoa! You go Cal!" yelled Joshua. I hadn't seen him follow us.

"Yo kid! Get lost dude, this is between the five of us," said David. He lunged at me, and I side-stepped, dodging him easily.

"You know, it's funny. Usually when it's four to one, the four guys beat the one easily. This is just sad on your behalf," I said, as David struggled to regain his balance after tripping on a loose rock.

"Shut up Psycho!" he said, lunging at me again. I wasn't quite as fast this time, and he managed to knock me to the ground. Bill and Bob rushed in and held me down, and David sat on top of me.

"Hey, get off him you dick!" shouted Joshua. I thought he left…

"Take a hint kid, get lost," said David, not shifting at all. Josh opened his mouth to argue, but Noob-kid jumped him from behind, holding him in the same choke-hold he tried on me.

"Hey! Let him go, he's done nothing wrong!" I yelled.

"Got any lunch money kid?" David asked him.

"No, why?"

"Then you stay." He smiled meanly at Joshua, and I was furious. With all my strength I rolled to one side, tipping him off me and wrenching myself free of Bill and Bob's grip. I leapt up, launching myself at Noob-kid and Joshua. As I was trying to free him, David, Bill and Bob all pounced on us, and it quickly became a massive fist-fight.

Suddenly a black four-wheel-drive sped into view, screeching to a halt in front of us. We broke apart, except for Noob-kid, who still held onto Joshua. You wouldn't believe it, but just then Sligo jumped out, aiming a gun at us!

"Alright, everyone against the wall!" he shouted. We all did as he said, except for Joshua. Why didn't he-? Suddenly David shoved me forward, and I almost ran right into Sligo. He grabbed me by the shirt, aiming the gun at my head! I fought against him, but it was no good.

"No! You can't shoot me, the teachers and students would come running! They'd call the cops!" I said, hoping it would help me out just a little bit.

"What? Cal, he _is_ a cop!" said Joshua. I stopped fighting and looked at him. He didn't look like he was kidding.

"Who the hell is this guy?" shouted Noob-kid.

"My dad," he said. He still looked serious. "Officer Vulkan Sligo."

"Look, against the wall! Everyone SHUT UP! Speak and I'll shoot!" said Sligo, shoving me into the wall. He didn't let go of my shirt.

"What the hell do you want, Sligo? Why are you here?" I asked, trying to ignore the questions I had about what Joshua just said.

"I see you were picking on my son, _Cal_," he said, pressing his fist deeper into my chest. I wheezed, unable to breath.

"No, dad! Cal was helping me, it was the other four who were!" said Joshua. Sligo looked from him back to me again.

"Why were _you_ helping my son?" he asked, more curious than angry now. Slowly, he loosened his grip enough for me to breath, but not enough for me to run for it.

"How the hell would I have known if he were _your_ son? He said his dad was a cop, not Vulkan Sligo! If I had known it was you, I wouldn't have spoken a word to him!" I said. It was dawning on me that maybe it was true, that maybe Joshua and Sligo were related. Looking closely, I could see why I thought I had recognised him. They both have the same shape and colour eyes, and the same upward curve of their mouth, even when they're angry or upset.

"He didn't know it was me?" Sligo asked Joshua, turning to face him.

"No, I never really said your name. Just that you are a cop," he answered. He appeared shocked at my reaction to meeting his dad.

"Hmm... Well, it wasn't you who attacked my son then, I'll deal with you later." He said the last bit so only I heard, before slamming me into the wall, and then dropping me. He turned the gun to David and his gang, and they stood perfectly still. Joshua came over and helped me up.

"Sorry about that Cal. He must've just picked you because you were accused of so much the other year, and I think he thinks you weren't framed for all of it, and you still deserve to be arrested," he looked so sincere, but I couldn't trust him now, not if he thinks his dad's a cop, and that it's safe for me to be around him.

"You really don't know, do you?" I asked.

"What?"

"That your dad isn't a-" Sligo spun around, aiming the gun at me again.

"Cal, don't say another word!" he said. He signalled me to stand with the other four, and I did as he said, watching the barrel of the gun.

"You can't keep it up Sligo," I said.

"Shut it! You four, bother my son again, and I'll be sure the rest of your life won't be pretty. Scram!" David and his gang ran off, and I wished I could follow them out. A few seconds later, I heard more footsteps approaching, in the direction that the boys ran.

"Cal? I saw them run off, what did you do to-" It was Winter, but she cut off what she had been saying to scream when she saw Sligo. More footsteps, and Griff, Boges, and Ryan showed up. They stopped dead in their tracks.

"Holy! Cal, are you ok?" shouted Boges, clearly wanting to rush in and help, but not wanting to give Sligo a reason to shoot. Slowly he took in Joshua's calm but confused expression. He was standing close to Sligo, seemingly undisturbed by the gun.

"Guys, meet _officer_ Vulkan Sligo. Aka, Joshua's _dad_," I said, a hint of disgust in my voice.

"Sligo? You have a son? Since when?" cried Winter.

"Since seventeen years ago, _Winter_. I haven't seen him since he was seven, but his mother's having some financial troubles, so I'm taking care of him," he said. Suddenly something in my brain clicked.

"Wait, guys! It DID happen! Why did you lie?" I yelled at my friends. Sligo raised an eyebrow.

"What do you mean?" asked Ryan, but I could tell he knew he had lost.

"You guys said it was a dream! You lied! Why the heck would you lie about that, it was bad enough thinking I was freaking over nothing, and I ignored all urges to check over my shoulder! What if there HAD been someone there?" I looked down at my hands again, really focussing. Sure enough, I found two really faint scars. The bullet holes.

"Cal, Ezekiel just wanted to protect you! He thought up the lie, thinking it would help you cope better. You know he cares for your safety, and so do we," said Winter.

"How long was I really in the hospital. Bullet wounds don't heal that fast!"

"Three months," said Boges quietly.

"Wait, did you say bullet wounds?" asked Joshua, sounding concerned.

"Shut up Josh!" snapped Ryan.

"No, he didn't know. Don't get too angry just yet," I said. "Yes, I said bullet wounds. But maybe you should ask your dad about that." Suddenly Sligo pulled his fist back, and punched me in the face. I tasted blood again, remembering that first hit, before the multiple beatings. I spat it out, glaring at him.

"Dad! Stop it, he was just kidding, right Cal?" said Joshua, holding Sligo's arm back before he could punch again.

"Sure, just kidding," I mumbled, stumbling because of the blood. I spat more out. Hesitantly, Sligo lowered his arm again.

"I'll see you after school, Joshua. I've got work to do at home. Cal, we aren't finished here…" he warned. He tussled up Joshua's hair, before jogging back to his car, slipping the gun back into his pocket. He sped off, and I let out the breath I was holding, along with even more blood.

"What the heck was that about Cal?" asked Josh.

"We should be asking you!" snapped Boges.

"I told you, he doesn't know! He thinks he's a cop!" I said.

"Yeah? What if he's just acting? You're just putting yourself in more danger!" said Boges. I opened my mouth to defend myself, but Winter cut in.

"Yeah Cal, you should know all about _acting_!" she said. I knew she was referring to the last time Sligo had me, and he forced me to turn her in.

"You know that wasn't my choice! He had a gun on me! If it were up to me, I'd be nowhere near him!"

"Well, he could have a gun on _him_ too!" said Ryan. Since when was he not on my team?

"Guys! What are you talking about?" cried Joshua.

"Your father's a massive criminal!" shouted Griff, speaking up. There was a moment of awkward silence, as Joshua tried to interpret what he just said.

"No, he's a cop. You can't just assume that because someone has a gun that they're a criminal!" he said, defending his dad.

"Guys, let me talk to him. Then when we get home, I'll talk to you, Ryan," I said.

"If you don't come out of this alive, expect: 'I told you so'," said Griff, walking off with the others.

"Thanks Cal, I owe you one," said Joshua.

"Good, you owe me just enough to hear me out. I don't care if you don't believe me, but hear me out all the same." He nodded to say he understood. "First of all, when did he tell you he was a cop?"

"I was five. I really wanted to get this thing from the store, some sort of lolly, and so I was looking for a couple of dollars. That's when I found a gun in his closet. I asked him about it that night, at dinner, and he said he was a cop. For the next two years, I payed close attention to what he was doing, and it seemed to match up. Every so often some of his work mates would come over, and he'd send me outside to play as they spoke about dangerous criminals they were after. Then my mum moved, and I didn't see him again, until about two months ago." He seemed sad when he spoke about not seeing his dad, and it reminded me of my dad, and how much I missed him.

"That makes sense. You were five years old, of course he wouldn't say something like 'oh, I have a gun because I shoot people I don't like'. Heck, I wouldn't expect him to ever say something like that! But look, I know this is hard to hear, especially since he denies everything. But if you knew what that man has put me through, you'd understand why I freaked out when he showed up, and why my friends reacted that way when they found out you were Sligo's son."

"Personally, I can't think of any reason to hate being in his presence. I mean, sure he has a bit of a temper, but he's so nice to me. My mum said it hadn't worked out between them, never saying anything about him heading down a dark path. Otherwise she wouldn't have let me stay with him."

"Yeah well… You know Winter? Well, her story, the one I said was worse than mine and too hard for her to say or hear, is that on her tenth birthday she begged her parents to take her to the aquarium. But on the way there, they had an accident, and her father lost control of the car, sending it rolling down a hill. Winter, who hadn't been wearing a seatbelt, was flung out, but her parents were killed."

"Whoa! No wonder-"

"That's not it. Sligo had cut the brakes, hoping to take all three of them out. He hadn't counted on her surviving. He took care of her for six years, with her family's money, and when she met me, that's when our worlds collided… big time."

"What happened?"

"There's this thing called the Ormond Singularity, connected to the Piers Ormond will, and my father left me the challenge of working it out, just before he died from a poison my uncle gave him. It was the end of January, and Boges and I hadn't had the best of luck figuring everything out so far. Anyway, I was pulled off the street by Zombrovski and Bruno, two of Sligo's thugs, and they took me to his car yard, where they questioned me on the Singularity. When they realised I didn't know anything, he threw me in an oil tank, began filling it up, then he left me there to drown."

"Yeah right! My dad would never do anything like that!"

"I'm still going. Winter rescued me, just before my time was up, and she helped me escape. At this time, she still hadn't learnt about what really happened to her parents. But that was just the _first_ time I met him! For the rest of the year, he chased me, tracking me down wherever I went; he locked me in one of those insane asylums, Leech-wood Lodge, under a fake identity: Benjamin Galloway, and said I was delusional, and I could only get out if I gave him a bunch of papers and clues I'd uncovered."

"Well why didn't you just give them to him?" he asked. At least he wasn't arguing with me about what I was saying.

"Someone had stolen them just before he locked me up; I had no idea where they were. Anyway, Winter and Boges came up with a plan to bust me out. The next severe encounter I had with him, he threw me in an Obelisk, a large dungeon-like pit that had a massive spike in it. Luckily I dodged the spike, and waited there until my uncle got me out."

"Wasn't he evil though? Wasn't he the one who was crushed to death?"

"Yeah. Anyway, the last I saw of Sligo that year was him being sucked under the bog, and I thought that was the last of him. However, almost a year later, he and three new thugs he hired, Harry, Viper and my old rival, Three-o pulled me in off the street, and they locked me in a small prison-type basement. He forced me to ring Winter and lie to her about where I was, but it didn't turn out so well, and he shot my hand. Then he forced me to go turn her in, tricking her into walking right into his trap. He caught me giving her food she wasn't supposed to get, and he shot my other hand, punched me in the face twice, kneed me in the gut, kicked me in the gut, punched me in the gut twice, choked me almost to my death, and threw me across the room three times."

"Wait-"

"Then Boges and Ryan showed up, with Ezekiel and Scottie. Sadly, that didn't work out so well, and Sligo beat me up heaps more, for a whole hour. I must've lost consciousness somewhere through it, because the next thing I remember was waking up in hospital, being told it was a dream and I had been asleep for a week." There was a moment of silence, as he worked out what he made of this.

"Wait, who are Ezekiel and Scottie? Do they go to this school?" he asked.

"No. They're my body guards. You heard of Murray, 'Toecutter' Durham?"

"Yeah."

"They used to be his body guards, but they work for me and my family now. Basically it's his way of apologising for what he did when we were little."

"What did he do?"

"He helped my uncle to try to kill us, but at the last minute he thought better of it, and grabbed Ryan and ran. He thought someone got me too, but they hadn't. Eventually, the cops found me, and they took me back home. No one knew what happened to Ryan, up until two years ago."

"Oh… sorry I asked." He kicked the dirt with the toe of his sneaker. He sighed before speaking again. "I'm sorry, I just can't believe you… not until I see it for myself."

"I understand. If I had just heard a guy I just met tell me that about _my_ dad, I would have decked him," I laughed. Suddenly I had a thought. I wiped the dirt from my hands, and held them out to him, palms up. His eyes went wide with shock, as he noticed the scars. I now knew why I hadn't seen them in the hospital. It was because of how the IV drips were attached. They hid the scars from sight, and after the first look I hadn't given them much more thought.

"You mean to say my dad did that?" he asked, his voice much quieter now.

"Yeah. Sorry, it's a lot to take in on your first day at a new school." Just then I heard more footsteps approaching, and I braced myself. Ezekiel poked his head around the corner of the wall.

"Cal! Ryan texted me, said you may want some help. Who's he? Did he punch you?" he asked, getting concerned. He came up and stood behind me.

"Um, my name is Joshua. Joshua Thomson," said Josh, introducing himself.

"Ezekiel. I'm Cal's… um…" He looked at me, waiting to see whether I trusted Joshua enough to tell him.

"He's my body guard. The one I told you about," I said. Ezekiel nodded, holding out his hand to shake with Joshua.

"You look familiar Joshua. Have I seen you before?" asked Ezekiel. I shook my head at Josh, but it was too late.

"No, don't think so. You might be mistaking me for my dad. Um, I don't know what his job is now… I had thought he was a cop," said Joshua.

"A cop? Huh… what's his name?" asked Ez, and I tensed up.

"Vulkan. Vulkan Sligo." Just then, Ez pounced at Josh, tackling him to the ground.

"No, Ezekiel! Stop!" I shouted. He looked up at me, and Josh looked terrified. "He thought Sligo was a cop, he didn't know. I just told him the truth."

"And the truth is seriously hurting me right now! Please, get off me!" wheezed Joshua. Ezekiel slowly eased off him, but he kept a firm grip on his t-shirt.

"Did he punch you?" he repeated.

"No, that was… um… Sligo. He must've been watching or something, and a couple of guys started messing around with us. He came to break up the fight, and saw me. I'm just glad Joshua was actually there, or else he might've shot me… again," I whispered the last word, hoping Ezekiel would catch it, but not wanting it to be too obvious.

"So I guess you know then, hey?" he asked.

"Yeah. Three months? I was hit pretty bad!" I said.

"Uh huh. And you lost a lot of blood. Do you remember much of it?"

"Nothing after being thrown in the cell with you and Scottie. I've had a few dreams since then though… a dog's barking, lots of shouting, I occasionally see an image of a small white mouse. Then I hear a gunshot and it's over."

"Ok. I'll tell you later today, if you like? In the meantime… would you like to go home? I don't think it's all that safe here anymore. I'll bring Ryan home too."

"Sounds good. Sorry Josh, but I can't stick around with you. It's too dangerous," I said. Slowly, Ezekiel let go of Joshua's shirt, coming to stand behind me again.

"But what about our maths assignment? I can't do it alone! And I bet if you go, Winter would follow." He had a point. But I couldn't risk my life.

"Lunch times and during maths, but other than that, don't expect us to be best friends. None of the others will talk to you that much, and I'm not sure if I will yet," I said. Joshua looked hurt by the rejection, but he nodded anyway.

"Come on Cal, let's get you home. And if your mum asks, it was a couple of school bullies. She doesn't know about Sligo, and it's best to keep it that way. She thinks that the week you were gone, that resulted in a coma, was caused by street gangsters," said Ezekiel.

"Ok. I might see you tomorrow Josh, but don't count on it too much," I said, before walking off with Ez to the principal's office, requesting to take me home early.


	3. The truth comes out

**Hey guys, hoped you're enjoying it so far! And sorry about when the words are sometimes joined… it randomly happens to series' of words when I post them on fanfiction, and I don't even know when it will happen… it's really frustrating.**

**And Phasmidfan, thankyou again for your reviews, but may I say one thing..? I can't fix everything you've asked me to, and although I'm trying to get less dialogue and more description, it's very hard for me. Also, it's difficult to put more of characters in when I'm trying to put more of another in. Such as I could be working on more Ryan, and realise I need more Boges, but it is hard to get more of both. Sorry, but I'll still try my best. Thanks again, and I hope I can fix most of the problems.**

Chapter 3 – The truth comes out.

"Ok. I might see you tomorrow Josh, but don't count on it too much," I said, before walking off with Ez to the principal's office, requesting to take me home early.

He knocked on the principal's office door gently, hoping he wasn't in a meeting.

"Come in," said Principal Wills. Ezekiel opened the door and walked in, followed closely by me.

"Terribly sorry sir, but may I request to take Callum, Ryan and Gabbi Ormond home early today?" he asked politely. Principal Wills looked at me, noticing my bruised face.

"My! What happened to the poor child?" he said, coming over to examine my face.

"I tripped at lunch sir. It's alright, really. It just looks bad," I said. Saying it was Sligo could lead to all sorts of trouble, and blaming it on David and his gang would most likely guarantee them bugging me much more often.

"Ok then. But if any of the other students are bullying you, just let a teacher know. We don't tolerate bullying here. Now, why would you like to take them home early?" he said, as he turned back to Ezekiel.

"It's a family emergency. Their mum would like them home as soon as possible," said Ezekiel, which wasn't really a lie. It was an _emergency_that I got away from Joshua's _family_.

"Are you his legal parent or guardian?" asked Principal Wills.

"Yes sir. I'm his legal guardian." Once again… not a lie. _Guarding_ me is his job.

"Ok then. Next time though it would be appreciated if you let us know before hand," said Principal Wills, and Ezekiel nodded, thanking him.

"Yes sir, I'll be sure to let the school know next time," he said. We walked back outside, and I led Ezekiel to Ryan's classroom.

"Please do pages 7-10 in your textbook while I talk to this man," said Mr. Leo, our homeroom, English and social studies teacher. He walked over to us, and his smile faded when he saw my face.

"He tripped. It's a real shame, his skin is quite easily bruised," explained Ezekiel.

"Oh, that's not very good. Are you ok?" asked Mr. Leo.

"Yes sir," I answered.

"Sorry to interrupt your lesson, but could I please take Ryan home? I have already spoken to Principal Wills, he said it would be fine," said Ezekiel.

"Um, I guess so. Is Callum going too?" asked Mr. Leo.

"Yes," said Ezekiel.

"Ok then. Ryan? You're going home early today. Try to get the homework done, but it's ok if you can't," said Mr. Leo. Ryan stood up and packed up his books. As we were walking out, I caught a glimpse of Joshua, sitting at the back of the room as far away from the others as possible. I couldn't see David or his gang anywhere…

We made our way down to Gabbi's classroom next, and Ezekiel tapped on the door lightly. At first she was shocked to see us, but then scared when she saw my bruised face. I was already getting used to it.

"Can I help you sir?" asked her teacher.

"Yes, I'm here to take Gabbi home, I've spoken to Principal Wills, and he said it's fine," said Ezekiel. I don't think my mum's paying him enough for all the work he does…

"No problem. Gabbi, your father's here," said Gabbi's teacher.

"He's not my dad," said Gabbi. Not the best idea…

"He's not? Well then I'm sorry, but-"

"I'm her guardian," said Ezekiel, cutting the teacher off.

"Is this true?" she asked Gabbi.

"Yep!" She ran up to us, grabbing Ezekiel's hand.

"Ok. Will you be back tomorrow?" asked the teacher.

"We'll have to see. There's a… family emergency we have to tend to, so we have to wait and see how everything turns out," explained Ezekiel, minimising the amount of lies he had to tell. So far, there were none. Together the four of us walked out, heading towards Ezekiel's car.

"Why are we going home early?" asked Gabbi.

"Um, there's this new kid in Cal and my class, Joshua Thomson, and well… it turns out Sligo has a son…" said Ryan.

"Is 'Joshua' Sligo's son?" she asked, her eyes going wide. "Is Joshua the guy who hit you Cal?"

"No, Sligo did that. He must've been watching Joshua from somewhere, and when a couple of school bullies started picking on him, he showed up, finding me there too. I had been trying to get the other guys _off_ of Joshua, but Sligo thought I was attacking him as well," I explained.

"So now Sligo knows you go to that school?" she pushed.

"Yeah." We made it to the car, and Gabbi, Ryan and I got in the back together, Gabbi in the middle, and Ezekiel got in the driver's seat. He started the engine and we put our seatbelts on. The whole ride home I constantly checked out the back window, and in the rear-view mirrors for Sligo's black four-wheel-drive.

The trouble with that though, is how many black four-wheelers there were on the road. It was almost impossible to tell which one it was!

Finally we made it back, and I saw that mum's car wasn't in the driveway.

"Where'd mum go?" I asked Ezekiel.

"Um, not quite sure, but I think she has a date or something…" He let his voice trail off, smiling. "Now, let's get inside and Ryan and I can tell you all about what happened after we showed up at Sligo's place. Gabbi, you should head up to your room and-"

"No! I wanna hear the story too!" she said. Ezekiel sighed and ran his hand through his hair.

"Ok then. But if you interrupt us while we're speaking too often, you'll have to go upstairs, ok? It's very important that Cal hears the truth," he said.

"Thank-you so much!" she squealed, giving him a hug before running inside. We followed her in, and headed straight for the couch. Ezekiel hesitated, hovering by the empty seat. I could tell he was thinking if there was any way to stop everything from happening and to reverse everything that had already been done. Finally he gave up, sitting down with a sigh.

"So, you remember being thrown into the cell with Scottie and I, while Winter, Boges and Ryan were in the one across from us. Anything else?"

"No, the last thing before waking up in hospital was you asking me: '_Cal?__Cal,__are__you__ok__buddy?_' then you said: '_Cal!__Come__on!__Wake__up!_' I was wondering what you meant by that, thinking my eyes were open, then suddenly I saw the hospital room," I said, shivering at the freaky memories. Ryan pulled Gabbi into a hug, and Ez rubbed his temples, trying to get the memories out of his head too.

He realised he was meant to be telling me what happened, and stopped, trying to remember again. Gabbi looked up at us, getting bored with the silence, and stood up, pulling herself out of Ryan's arms. She jogged upstairs, the silence returning.

"Ok. I'm good; it's just hard not to... freak out at the memories. After the beating, you fell unconscious, and I did ask for you to wake up. Scottie pulled out a mobile, thank god Sligo didn't think of that, and dialled Griff, telling him to find backup. At midnight he arrived with Repro and… Kelvin," said Ezekiel.

"You mean Oriana's Kelvin?" I asked.

"Yep. Repro picked and unlocked every single lock, until they got to the fingerprint ID. Then Griff just spilt coke on the machine! Kelvin had thoughtfully brought his dog along with him, and they charged in first, straight down to the basement. But of course, Harry, Viper and Sligo were down there, and so the dog launched at Sligo, biting down on his arm hard. Kelvin jumped him from behind, and together he and the dog made a great team. Repro had a small, white, pet mouse with him, and he released it, letting it figure its way to Harry's trouser leg…" he explained with a laugh.

"That would be the dog and mouse from the nightmare I've been having," I said, recalling the barking dog and the images of a small, white mouse.

"I'd bet they are. Anyway, with the three guys distracted, Griff rushed forward, stealing the keys from Sligo and unlocking our doors. We all rushed out except for Kelvin. He stayed back to keep them off our trail. I carried you out to the waiting van, we all jumped in and I drove you straight to hospital, before dropping Repro, Griff and Boges back home."

"What about Kelvin? Was he shot? I remember hearing a gunshot just before the dream ended," I said. I was surprised Kelvin came to help us… I hoped he was all right.

"Um, I heard the shot fire, Kelvin cried out, but we were out of there before we could find out. I haven't heard from him since…" Ezekiel sounded worried, and so was I. I mean, someone who just saved my butt from Vulkan Sligo was shot and no one knows whether he's still alive! It's a horrible thought. I let out a stressed breath before standing up.

"Thanks for telling me the truth. I'm going to go get some rest," I said, heading upstairs to mine and Ryan's room. I flopped down on the bed, exhausted from trying to get my head around everything. What I had thought was a shock-induced nightmare returning to me since the hospital was really the truth trying to explain itself.

But that wasn't what mainly made me confused. Ryan, Winter and Boges, the three people who I trust the most, lied to me. So did Griff, now that I think about it. As well as Scottie and Ez. _And_my mum! Even though the lie she had been keeping was a lie in itself.

As I lay there, thinking how they could lie to such extremes like that, I heard a knock at the door.

"Come in," I said, sitting up. The door opened and Ryan stuck his head through. I gave him a half-smile before lying down again. He came over and sat on the end of my bed. "What's up?"

"I'm sorry we lied. We all are. We just wanted to help you, to protect you from being scared," he said. I sat up again, nodding slowly.

"I know. But I just don't know how you thought that telling me he was dead would protect me. Didn't you realise that one day we'd cross paths again? That sometime we would have to have this exact conversation?" I asked him.

"I don't know. We hadn't really thought about the future when we were deciding what to tell you. Your mum thought of it, thinking they were just a couple of street-gangsters and we could steer you away from them before they noticed you or vice-versa." He fiddled with a bit of the bed-sheets, not knowing what he could say to help me understand. "I just couldn't bear to lose the brother I just met; the brother I just made a friendship with."

"It's ok, I understand. I would probably do the same thing," I told him, hoping he wouldn't feel quite so bad anymore.

"Thanks Cal, that means a lot." He smiled at me, before getting up and walking to his bed. He turned on the TV in our room, straight to a horror movie. I laughed at him.

"How can you stand that?" I said.

"What?" he asked, clearly not understanding the irony here.

"How can you watch a horror movie, when our life is like a horror movie?" I laughed.

"It's nice to see someone besides us wet their pants and scream," he said, now laughing too.

"I do not understand you, little brother," I laughed. We sat there for a few minutes, watching the end of the movie.

"So... who do you think it is?" asked Ryan, as the end credits came on.

"What do you mean?" I said, tilting my head to the side.

"Mum's date! Ez said he thought she went out on a date, so who do you think it is?" he said, bouncing on the bed a bit.

"First of all: you are retarded! Second: I have no idea. She could be dating anyone. Speaking of mums, are you spending next week with Mrs. Spencer? Your 'other' mum?" I asked. Every so often, once a month, he spends a week with the woman he grew up with while thinking that she was his mum.

"Yeah, we decided I'd leave tomorrow, even though it's Tuesday. Then I'll come back next week on Wednesday. We can still visit each other though. Sally likes you, she thinks you're really nice," he said. Sally was his old mum's first name. "Plus we'd see each other at school."

"Yeah, it's alright. I'd guess you'd be taking the day off tomorrow though, right? To spend the day with her?" I asked.

"Yeah." We sat in silence again, as another movie began. I sighed and lay down again, not interested in watching other people's pain. Three years ago I would've, but after everything I'd been through, I just couldn't find it funny.

If someone on-screen was shot, I'd feel the bullet pierce through my hand. If they were kicked, punched or beaten, I'd feel that too. If they were shoved, or they whacked their head, I'd feel the contact with the concrete walls. And being chased by an pick-axe wielding mass-murderer or some other type of villain... well, you could guess why that didn't appeal to me.

Shaking those thoughts from my head, I closed my eyes and focused on sleep…

_... I walked down the street with Joshua, talking about something probably unimportant. He turns to me, smiling. But his smile soon turns evil, and he laughs. I try to run away but I can't move. He pushes me to the ground, still laughing. A black four-wheel-drive pulls up and Sligo jumps out. He pats Joshua on the back, and hugs him. Then Sligo turns back to me as I lay there, paralysed. He pulls out a gun, aims it at my head, and fires..._

I sit up straight, sweat covering my entire face. I pat myself down, looking for a bullet hole. Satisfied it was just a dream, I stood up. I had a quick shower and went downstairs. No one was up; it was 5:00am. I poured myself a juice and went into the lounge room. I sat down and flicked the TV onto the news, trying to clear my head. After a few minutes of boring lectures, I finished the juice and went back into the kitchen, finding mum washing up.

"Hey, what happened?" she said, coming over to examine my bruised face.

"Just a couple of school bullies, I'm alright," I said. I put my empty cup in the sink.

"Cal, if some kids are giving you trouble you should let the teachers know. They must've had a really strong hit! Is this why Ezekiel brought you three home early yesterday?" she said.

"Yeah, but it's ok mum. I'll be fine. I, umm... know those guys. About... three months ago..." I said, trailing off.

"Oh, not those street-gangsters! I'm sorry for lying Cal, I really am!" she apologised.

"It's ok. Better I know actually."

"But they don't go to that school, do they?" she asked.

"Look, I'll be fine." Suddenly Ryan came in, and he stopped when he saw us talking.

"Am I interrupting..? Haha, I sound like Cal yesterday!" he said.

"It's fine. We were just talking about that gang from yesterday. And I know it's a little late, but thanks for calling Ezekiel," I said.

"No problem. Was it needed?" he asked, careful not to let anything too important slip in front of mum.

"Nah, but I do think I needed to come home earlier. Turns out he's a pretty understanding guy. Little one, not big guy. If big guy was I'd be completely safe!" I joked, hoping he'd get who I meant by 'little one' and 'big guy', and hoping it wasn't too obvious for mum to work out it wasn't street-gangsters.

"Haha, are they little code-names they use for each other? Is 'little one' a nicer guy than the others or something?" asked mum, trying to keep up.

"Yeah, they're code-names. I haven't really learnt much about 'little one', but he seems ok so far," I told her, still keeping as quiet as possible while seeming to tell her the full story.

"Ok. Ryan, are you ready to go to Sally's place?" she asked, checking her watch.

"I'm not going until nine, I have plenty of time," he said.

"Yes, but it's always better to be prepared. Cal, would you please go upstairs and make sure Gabbi's awake? Ezekiel is going to drive you to school today," said mum. I nodded before heading upstairs to Gabbi's room.

I tapped on her door lightly, but there was no answer. I knocked harder and heard a muffled groan, along with the rustling of bed sheets. I slowly opened the door and stuck my head through.

"Gabs? You up?" I asked. I was met with a pillow in the face. My smile dropped. I bent down to pick it up, and I ran up to her bed. I wrestled her into a hug, and she tried to get away. It was no use.

"No! Cal, let me go! Ahh!" she screamed, while laughing at the same time.

"Come on, mum says you gotta get up," I said, finally releasing her.

"Five more minutes," she persisted, laying back down. I smiled before standing up and walking back out again.

"Ok, but if it's five minutes and one second, you'll be in big trouble missy!" I told her. She giggled, and I closed her bedroom door again.

Walking back downstairs, I packed my lunch for the day, before grabbing a bowl of corn flakes for breakfast. It was these little luxuries I missed most about being on the run; a clean bed, twenty-four hour shower access, a decent meal three times a day…

I couldn't stop thinking about Sligo. No matter how many times I think I'm finally rid of him, he always turns back up, ready and raring to ruin my life some more. Not only that, but how could he have a son? Did Joshua's mum not realise who she was married to? Does she still not know who she is leaving her son with?

There were too many questions I needed answers to… and there was one person who might know the answers…

But that was too risky. I didn't even know if Joshua and Sligo were working together. Could Joshua be trying to gain my trust, just so he could stab me in the back? Like what Sharkey did? More questions.

I sighed and dug into my breakfast, deciding that I'd think about it later. Maybe tomorrow?

Just then, Ezekiel came downstairs, swinging his car key around his index finger. I picked up my plate and put it in the sink, before swinging my backpack over my shoulder.

"So you sure you want to go to school again today Cal? After the run-in with Joshua and you-know-who?" asked Ezekiel, as Gabbi came downstairs. I nodded. Two years ago I decided I'd do anything to go back to a normal life; going to school with my best friend and living at home with my mum and my sister. Clearly though, after finding out the mystery of the Ormond Singularity, my life will never be fully 'normal'. I'm still determined to have everything as close to normal as possible though, and I'm not going to let Sligo or Joshua ruin that for me.

"Who's Joshua? Is that one of the street-gangster's names? Is that 'little one' or 'big guy', or is it someone else?" asked mum. Why couldn't she just drop the matter?

"Joshua is the one I referred to as 'little one'," I told her.

"Ok… so he's the nicer one..?" she pushed.

"It's not important. I'm not going to put off school just because they chose _that_ particular school," I said, turning back to Ezekiel.

"I have a horrible feeling you'll regret this Cal," he said, shaking his head in disagreement. "But it's your choice. Ready Gabbi?" he asked, turning in my sister's direction.

**Ok, hope you liked chapter 3, and sorry it took so long XD Chapter 4 is on its way!**


	4. Mum's date

**I'd like to say a big thanks to the people on the Conspiracy 365 facebook page, and the new trailer is THE BEST!**

Chapter 4 – Mum's date…

"I have a horrible feeling you'll regret this Cal," he said, shaking his head in disagreement. "But it's your choice. Ready Gabbi?" he asked, turning in my sister's direction.

"Come on Cal! I don't want to be late!" Gabbi said, practically pushing me out the door.

"Haha, you're not going to be late! If we leave now you'll be early," I told her. But she didn't stop, she just pushed harder.

"No! I'll be late to meet Suzie!" she said. Ezekiel laughed at her, and she folded her arms over her chest, clearly unimpressed.

"Ok, let's go," I said. Suddenly Ezekiel got a cheeky grin, and I had a feeling he was up to no good...

Just as Gabbi went out to Ezekiel's car, he bent down and picked me up, swinging me over his shoulder like a sack of potatoes.

"Ahh! Ez, what are you doing?" I screamed. He just laughed and carried me outside, before throwing me into the backseat of the car.

"Remind you of the first time we ran into each other?" he said.

"What happened when you first met?" asked mum. I hadn't seen her come out.

"I kidnapped him and took him to see Murray Durham, believe it or not. Just for a chat, he wasn't in any danger. That's how he learnt about Samuel. Well, Ryan really," explained Ezekiel. Mum gasped and her hand shot up to her mouth. Hmm, maybe she didn't realize _why_ Ezekiel was my bodyguard...

"You mean Murray '_Toecutter_' Durham? You kidnapped my son?" she shrieked.

"Whoa, settle down Win. Like I said, _just__for__a__chat_. He was in no danger," said Ezekiel.

"Yeah mum, it was fine. I was a little freaked out, but they didn't hurt me. Wasn't the first time I'd been kidnapped, either," I said, backing him up.

"How could you not tell me that? I can't believe I've been leaving my son and daughter with someone like you! Cal, Gabbi, out of the car right now!" said mum, grabbing Gabbi's arm and pulling her out. She reached out towards me. Slowly I stepped out, but I refused her outstretched hand.

"Mum, without Ezekiel I'd be..." I stopped myself. How could I explain this to mum, without freaking her out any more than she already is?

"You'd be what?" she asked.

"I'd… I'd be _dead,_ mum. If it wasn't for Ezekiel, I'd be dead." Ok, maybe not dead… but I would've been better off dead. Sligo would've made my life even more of a living hell than it already was.

Mum was silent. Slowly, she shook her head, and I wondered whether it was in denial or if she was trying to shake the answer into an easier section of her mind. Finally she spoke.

"Look, I'm going to be late for work, and you kids will be late for school if we don't get a move on. Ezekiel, you can take Cal and Gabbi to school, but then… you're fired," she said.

"What? No, mum please! You can't fire him, he's done nothing wrong!" I pleaded, but it was no use. Mum had made up her mind.

"No, Cal, there's nothing you can do. I enjoyed working for you and your family, but my actions in the past mean it can't continue," said Ezekiel. Just then, Ryan came out to see why we were still here.

"What's going on?" he asked.

"Mum just fired Ezekiel!" I told him, still not believing it myself. Ryan looked at mum, shocked to hear the news.

"You what? Why?" he demanded.

"Because apparently Ezekiel was involved with kidnapping Cal before we hired him. He was working for Murray Durham! I refuse to have someone with that sort of criminal record in charge of my son's safety!" said mum.

"But-" I started to protest, but mum cut me off.

"Enough! You're going to be late, and so am I. Oh, and my new boyfriend is coming over for dinner tonight, so I want you home by five o'clock, ok?" she said, indicating that this discussion was over.

"Yes mum," I said reluctantly. Gabbi and I got into Ezekiel's car, me in the front, Gabbi in the back. Ezekiel seemed like he wanted to say something more, but instead he just sighed and got in the driver's seat. As he started the car, mum and Ryan went back inside. Ryan didn't look very happy, but neither was I. Without Ezekiel, what would I do about Sligo? Ezekiel started the car and backed out of the driveway. Once we were on the street he spoke.

"I'm sorry Cal; I should've kept my mouth shut. She knows that Scottie and I worked together for years, so she's probably guessed that Scottie was involved in the kidnapping as well," said Ezekiel. He didn't look at me when he spoke.

"It's not your fault. And it wasn't really 'kidnapping', because you let me go again at the end, and it was only for a chat, as you said." He gave me a half-smile, but I could tell he still felt it was his fault.

"Thanks Cal, but it's too late anyway," he said. Just then I had a thought. It was risky, but hopefully Ezekiel wouldn't be too harsh on me. Like Toecutter, I can't live without confessing… even if he never suspected anything in the first place.

"Hey Ez? I need to tell you something… about our first 'meeting'," I said. I paused to see if he had anything to say.

"What about it?" he said.

"It wasn't really when you took me off the street…" He raised an eyebrow at me. "At the start of February, in that same year, you remember hearing the front door of your house slam? You yelled out who was there."

"Where are you going with this?" he asked, now curious.

"Winter and I snuck in," I blurted. "It was just after she got me out of Sligo's oil tank, and she wanted me to help her out with a favor. She said she had to go back to the house she used to live in and retrieve a locket her parents gave her, and I agreed to help. At that time, you were living in that house, after Sligo gave it to you, apparently to pay back a debt."

"Wait a minute… you broke into my house?" he yelled.

"You broke into Ezekiel's house?" cried Gabbi from the back seat.

"Yes… I'm sorry. Anyway, we snuck in, got the locket and were practically out when the door slammed. Winter grabbed my arm as you yelled out and we bolted. I'm really sorry, but I figured I should tell you. Given you got fired for admitting something you did; I thought I should admit something to you that has been making me a little nervous for a while." I stopped and waited for his reaction, but he was fairly calm. Upset… but calm.

"So you mean to tell me that a few years ago you and Winter broke into my house and stole a locket?" he asked.

"Not 'stole', it was her birthday present that her parents gave to her… the same day they died," I told him. "But that aside, yes, that's exactly what I did." He sighed and shook his head as he pulled into the drop-off zone. He slowed the car to a stop and held his hand out to me.

"Thanks for telling me the truth, Cal. I'm really going to miss working for you, Ryan and Gabbi. Hey, maybe I'll even drop in and help out when I can… not in front of your mum, of course," he said, smiling at me. I took his hand and shook it. Just as I was pulling away to follow Gabbi out of the car though, he pulled me back again.

"But mark my word, if you ever break into my house again… I will hunt you down," he warned. I nodded and he let me go.

"It was one time only, and to be honest, when she said that the house belonged to 'one of Toecutter's bodyguards' I did not want to stick around, let alone go inside!" I said. He gave a sort of half-chuckle, before nodding to say goodbye. I shut the door and he drove off. I just hoped it wouldn't be the last time I saw him.

But I also hoped it _would_ be the last time I _needed_ him. As I turned to find the others, a black four-wheel-drive screeched into the drop-off zone and Joshua jumped out.

Sligo barely noticed me as he checked his watch, nodded his goodbye to Josh, and sped away again. I turned again to walk off, when Josh called my name.

"What do you want, Joshua? Did you forget our discussion yesterday?" I snapped, before realizing I was probably being too hard on him. He looked a little offended, but he put it aside to continue.

"No, I was just… um… saying hi… I guess. Um, last night I over-heard dad talking to some of his work-mates…" I could tell he was stalling, considering whether to tell me what he knew or not.

"Spit it out," I said.

"He… he mentioned something about you. I didn't quite catch what he said, but he definitely said 'Callum' and something about 'that stupid Ormond kid'. Anyway… please don't be mad with me, but I asked him about what you said to me," said Joshua, pausing and waiting for me to start yelling at him.

"So what did he say?" I asked calmly.

"At first he seemed to think that I was just delivering messages, but when he realized I was actually questioning him whether it was true or not, he got really mad. He said he needs to have a 'friendly chat' with you… but I don't like the way he said it… Dude, you have to be careful! Hopefully you'll be in the clear for today; he says he has a surprise for me this afternoon, and hopefully it means he'll be busy," said Joshua. The concern in his voice sounded genuine, but then so did Sharkey when he was talking to me.

Then again, why did Joshua care what happened to me? Is this another trick to make me think someone else is on my side, or is Joshua being serious? I figured there was only one way to find out…

"Why do you care? What reason do you have to warn me?" I asked him. He hesitated, looking at the ground as if he were embarrassed by what he was going to say next. I swear, if he says he's gay… **(A/N:****XD****lol)**

"Because you're pretty much the only guy who has ever stood up for me. I asked thirteen other people where I was supposed to go yesterday, and every single one told me to get lost. You were the only one who bothered. That's why I tried to help you when David was being a jerk, but it didn't go so well, and you ended up standing up for me instead." He paused and took a deep breath.

"I felt so confused when you freaked out at seeing my dad. At first I thought it was because of the gun, but then you appeared to know each other already, and I wasn't sure what to think. When you told me what he's done to you before, I didn't want to believe it, but last night proved I know nothing about my dad," he said. He looked up at me expectantly, and I saw a look of defeat in his eyes.

"It's ok. Sorry about snapping at you just before; I was just upset about something this morning," I told him. I was just about to say that Ezekiel was fired, but I stopped myself. No matter how good of an actor he might be, I couldn't trust him not to go running back to Sligo and telling him I was defenseless.

"What happened this morning?" he asked me.

"Nothing," I said. Suddenly I had a thought. "Do you know what happened? There was another guy who helped me get out of Sligo's place that didn't make it out himself; as far as I know anyway. I was wondering if you know anything about any recent… discussions… between Harry, Viper and Sligo that might have anything to do with him?" I was careful with what I said, and hoped I didn't give too much away.

"Umm, not that I know of… Oh, but my dad seemed happy when one of his older work-mates returned the other day, if that helps…? He says he's been lying low to avoid '_certain__people_', in which I'm expecting meant the cops, if what you've told me is true," he said. Although it wasn't what I was after, it struck me as somewhat important.

"Who was it? Do you know?" I asked him.

"Some old friend of my dad's… Bruno, I think his name was…?" said Joshua. This was definitely important! I wracked my brain to work out how this was possible, when I realized that I missed a very important detail…

Bruno never went to Ireland with Sligo and Zombie-Two! The last I saw of him he was shoving Griff and I into the shipping container with Winter! Of course, Sligo must've left him here so he could look after his home for him!

"Cal? Are you ok? You're looking a little pale buddy," said Joshua. I shook my head clear; looking into Joshua's questioning eyes.

"Bruno's back?" I asked. Josh nodded slowly. "And Sligo has him looking for me?" I continued.

"Yeah, why? You know Bruno?" asked Joshua. Now it was my turn to nod slowly.

"Bruno and Zombrovski were tailing me for Sligo that whole year… until Zombie… uh… _fell_ from the bell tower. Then Bruno and Zombrovski's twin brother were after me. A few times I've wondered whether it would've been better if I _left_ him on the train lines…" I said. Then again, if I had left him there I would've felt extremely guilty, and I never would've met Repro either.

"Ah, now I get it! But I heard Sligo ask him if he'd seen you recently, then Bruno muttered something about 'if it weren't for those damned adders'… you have any idea what he meant?" asked Joshua. I thought back over the year, but it didn't take me long to work out he meant _death_ adders.

"One time when he was chasing me…" I began. "He spooked me and I ran into Zombie, so I kicked backwards, connecting with Zombie's shin and he let go. But by then, Bruno had come right up to me, and he was blocking my only way out. So then… I punched him where it counts…" I said, laughing a little at the memory. "It got him off my back for a bit, but soon he was chasing me again through the halls of the building we were in. In a final attempt to loose him, I charged through a door, straight into a glass enclosure of death adders. I turned and bolted back out, straight into Bruno and Zombie again, but they ran as soon as they saw the adders coming at them." Joshua looked at me in disbelief.

"You ran into a glass enclosure of _death__adders_ and weren't bitten?" he said.

"No… I _was_ bitten, but I made it to a room full of anti-toxins and got the needle out just in time," I said, remembering my mad dash to find the right room before I ran out of time. Joshua shook his head.

"Ok, it makes a lot more sense now. He definitely would've wanted to catch you if you punched him between the legs, and he'd be even more annoyed if you got away due to a room full of poisonous snakes," said Joshua. I laughed again, and he smiled. Suddenly the bell rang, and I started heading for homeroom.

"Hey, Cal? Could I start hanging out with you guys again today? I don't like sitting on my own, and at lunch a couple of guys were calling me a loner," said Joshua as he followed me to class.

"Uh, ok. But you have to sit at the end of the table, next to me but not too close to the others. None of them trust you," I told him. He nodded, grateful that he wasn't being shut out from everyone. But I could see something else inside him… something wasn't quite right…

I tried to shake the thoughts from my mind, and focused on finding Winter, Boges and Griff again. It wasn't long before I found myself walking right up to them outside of homeroom.

"Cal, how'd it go yesterday? And what's HE doing here?" asked Boges, giving Joshua a filthy look.

"It went fine. And if you can put aside your inability to work with anyone who's associated with Sligo in any way, I have news," I told him. Instantly Winter and Griff were paying close attention, but Boges wouldn't stop glaring at Josh.

"So, what news do you have?" asked Winter.

"Bruno's back," I said. I was met with various levels of shock; most from Winter, and least from Griff. But I don't blame Griff, for he doesn't really know who Bruno is.

"So how important is this information?" he asked.

"Remember the shipping container? The two guys were Zombie-Two and Bruno. Zombie-Two is dead, same with the original Zombie, but Bruno is apparently still around," I told him. Almost instantly his shock rose higher.

"But how could he still be alive?" asked Boges. Winter's eyes almost fell out of her sockets when she realized the important detail we had all missed.

"Oh no! Bruno never went to Ireland!" she said.

"Exactly! Sligo must've told him to take care of things here in Australia, while he and Zombie-Two went to 'discover' the Ormond Singularity. So when Sumo charged at Sligo and Zombie-Two, knocking them into the bog, Bruno was safe and sound back here," I clarified. Joshua appeared to have no clue what we were talking about again, but this time I couldn't be bothered to explain, and I knew the others wouldn't either.

"Ok class, come on inside so we can begin," said Mr. Leo. We forwarded in and took our seats, Joshua making sure he was sitting as far away from the others as possible.

"Yo Josh, get up and get lost," said Boges rudely. Joshua looked hurt, and began standing up, but I grabbed his arm and sat him back down.

"Drop it Boges. I know how you feel, but this is just like when I tried to trust Winter and you didn't want to hear it. Joshua and Sligo are two different people; chances are Josh would try and _stop_ Sligo from getting me," I snapped. "You can't judge people based on their family." Boges shook his head and turned to look at the board, where Mr. Leo was writing down the notices for the day.

"Thanks Cal, but I can leave if that's what you'd prefer?" said Joshua. I shook my head.

"No, don't worry about it. Besides, Boges, he can deliver information from the inside… could come in handy now that Winter can't sneak around there," I said.

"What sort of info does he have?" asked Boges, turning back to me.

"Well, if it weren't for Josh, we wouldn't know about Bruno. Plus… it's not like any of us know what happened to Kelvin…" I said. Suddenly I felt Joshua stiffen beside me. I turned to look at him, and he looked a little pale.

"You mean Kelvin… with the purple teardrop tattoo…?" he asked. I raised an eyebrow at him, and I could see the others were interested as well.

"Yeah… what do you know about him?" asked Winter.

"That was the guy who helped you… but never got out… wasn't it?" he asked me.

"Yes! Now, what do you know?" I said.

"I've seen him… he was seriously bruised. I thought he had been in a fight or something, like he was gambling and owed someone money. Dad was talking to Bruno, Viper and Harry, and I saw this man leaning against the wall, like he'd rather be anywhere but there. Then dad said 'Kelvin' and he snapped to attention. He staggered over to him and dad started talking to him quietly. His face went pale but he nodded anyway. But then I saw Bruno start heading towards the door I was peaking through and I had to leave," explained Josh.

I couldn't believe it! Kelvin _never_ made it out! But at least he wasn't-

"Did he look like he'd been shot?" I asked.

"Uh… not that I noticed… why?" said Joshua. I thought for a moment, and realized that if he had been shot it would be just a scar like mine by now. But of course he'd be bruised if someone was still beating him up… yet that would mean he's being _forced_ to work for Sligo…

"Never mind, it would just be a scar like mine by now. But guys, we have to be careful if we see Kelvin again… I think Sligo's using him to trick us into walking into a trap. And Joshua, if Sligo says he wants a 'chat' with me… could you find some way to change the subject?" I said. Joshua nodded and I felt a tiny bit better.

Suddenly I realized that everyone else in the class was starting to stand up and walk out, and that we missed the entire homeroom session. I stood up and picked up my books, and the others followed suite. Just as I was walking out the door, I felt someone grab my arm. I turned to see who it was, and was met with David's smug face. But his '_too-cool-for-school_' look disappeared when he saw my bruises.

"Jeeze, I didn't think I got you _that_ hard!" he said.

"_You_ didn't," I muttered.

"No? Then who did?" asked David.

"Why do you care? Wasn't you, so is it important enough for you to need to know?" I asked him. He stopped and thought for a moment.

"Shit, it was that cop guy, wasn't it? That other kid's dad?" he guessed. "Haha, you try and help and get beaten up, while I attack him and get told to scram. Doesn't seem fair… does it Psycho?" I shrugged my shoulders and turned to walk away, but just as I'm taking a step, David shoved me forward and I hit the ground hard.

"See you at lunch, _Psycho_!" said David, running off to our next class. I got to my feet and dusted myself off.

"Hey Cal, are you ok?" called Winter, coming over to help.

"Yeah, I'm fine. I don't get what his problem is," I said. Together we walked to Christian Studies to meet up with the others.

The rest of our classes went by in a flash, and I didn't even see David at lunch. All was going well so far…

Eventually the final bell rang, and the stream of students rushed out of sixth-period math. Once we were out of the classroom, I turned to Winter and Boges.

"Hey, I gotta drop by Ryan's place on the way home, you guys coming?" I asked. They both nodded and we walked together down to Gabbi's classroom.

"Why do we have to go to Ryan? Isn't he spending the day with Sally?" asked Gabbi when we got to her.

"Yeah, but I have to drop his homework in to him. It'll only take a second, then we can walk Boges and Winter home," I told her. She shrugged her shoulders before grabbing Winter's hand. As we walked off together, they started humming some of Gabbi's favourite songs again.

It was about three forty-five when we finally made it to Ryan's flat, and I jogged up to his door. But there was no one home. I slid the work under his door and went back down to the others.

"Must be out. Ready?" I said. We started off again, heading towards Boges' place. At a quarter past four, we were walking up Boges' driveway. He turned to me as I was about to walk off.

"Look, I'm sorry about this morning with Joshua, but I think you should be a lot more careful. Remember Sharkey? It could all just be another trick," he said.

"Yeah, I know. But don't worry about me, I'll be fine," I said.

"I don't believe you. Cal, is there something you haven't told me…?" asked Boges.

"Mum fired Ezekiel," I said. Boges' eyes almost fell from their sockets, and Winter stopped humming mid-tune, much to Gabbi's disappointment.

"She what?" said Winter.

"She found out he had been working for Toecutter, and that he was involved in kidnapping me once. So she fired him and ignored me when I said he did nothing wrong," I explained. Boges' shook his head in disapproval, before checking his watch.

"Dude, now you have to be twice as careful, but I gotta get inside and do my homework. See you tomorrow?" he said.

"Sure. Come on Gabs, we'll take Winter home, and then we'll go ourselves," I said. We walked down the driveway again, this time in the direction of Winter's place.

We approached the large hotel in silence, heading straight to the main lobby.

"Hey Winter, would you like me to walk you up to your room?" I offered. She shook her head.

"It's ok, your mum's probably wondering where you are. Didn't she say to be home by five?" said Winter.

"What's the time now?" I asked.

"Quarter to," she said. Uh oh! I gave her a quick hug goodbye before grabbing Gabbi's hand and pulling her outside.

"Come on Gabs, we have to run!" I said. Together we pelted down the path, and I heard a crash of thunder overhead. Great, just what we needed. Rain. I slowed down and got on one knee.

"Here, I'll give you a piggy-back," I said to Gabbi. She climbed on and I set off for our house, just as the clouds above us gave way. In just a few short minutes, I was drenched from head to foot.

Finally we rounded the corner into our street, and I let Gabbi slide off me. Madly, we dashed to the safety of our house, pushing the door open and barging through. There, we collapsed in a fit of exhaustion, laughing at each other's soaking wet faces.

"Look at you two! They'll be here in less than a half hour! Quickly, go upstairs and get cleaned up," said mum, when she saw us sitting in muddy puddles on the floor. She went to the closet and got a mop as Gabbi and I went upstairs to get ready for dinner. I had a quick shower and got changed into dry clothes. I was just about to walk downstairs when I heard a knock at the door.

I heard mum open the door, and I jogged halfway down. But then what I saw made me stop dead in my tracks.


	5. Holy hell!

**Ok, long ago I decided to stop writing this story. But I keep getting reviews from people who want me to keep going. Mostly the reviews seem to be about 'Who's behind the door?' So, here you go.**

**Note: I hate my writing in this. I have changed greatly since writing this. And if you **_**really**_** want me to keep going with this…**

**1: You will have to beg a lot.**

**2: My writing will change from the next chapter on (writing style).**

**3: Characters will appear to change (Because they are way out of character in this story. It's revolting)**

**Anyway, RnR :)**

Chapter 5 – Holy hell!

I heard mum open the door, and I jogged halfway down. But then what I saw made me stop dead in my tracks.

Joshua was standing in my doorway! Then I saw that there was someone else, hidden from my view by mum's body. I didn't wait to find out whether I was right or wrong, and I bolted back upstairs, straight to my room. But it was too late, Joshua had seen me.

"Cal?! Wait, Cal, come back!" he cried. I heard footsteps pounding up the stairs… and then my horror met a new level.

"What? Cal? Joshua, wait, what are you talking about?" yelled Sligo, and I heard even more pounding footsteps growing closer. Desperately, I looked around my room, trying to find somewhere to hide. In a final attempt to conceal myself, I dived behind my bed and curled up as close to the wall as I could, trying not to show any part of my body.

Suddenly I heard my door open, and my mum's soft voice floated in.

"Cal? Are you in here? Do you know Joshua from school? Why are you hiding?" she said. Slowly and carefully, I lifted myself from the ground, peeking over the top of my bed. Apart from me and my mum, my room was empty.

"Mum, what the hell is he doing here?" I said. Mum looked taken aback at my response, but she answered anyway.

"Cal, why are you hiding from Joshua? Is he not nice to you?" she asked.

"I'm not hiding from _Joshua_,mum. What is Sligo doing here?" I said, trying to keep my voice steady.

"Huh? You mean Vulkan? He's my date! What is wrong with you? Why are you acting so strange?" she said. I almost puked. If this were some sort of sick joke…

"Not what I wanted to hear!" I said. Just then there was a knock at the front door.

"Could you get that?" mum called over her shoulder. I heard the door open, and then there was a lot of shuffling feet, and Sligo swore.

"Ezekiel?! Get off me! Win!" he yelled.

"What are you doing here, Sligo?!" yelled Ezekiel. Talk about timing! Mum and I rushed downstairs to find Ezekiel holding Sligo in a deadlock.

"Ezekiel!" I exclaimed.

"Ezekiel, what are you doing here?" asked mum, horrified at Ezekiel's behavior.

"I came to return Cal's wallet that he left in my car," he explained, using one hand to reach into his pocket and pull out my wallet.

"Ezekiel get off me!" said Sligo, fighting against Ez. But he held strong, and Sligo couldn't get away.

"What are you doing here, Vulkan?" Ezekiel asked again.

"Ezekiel, he's my new boyfriend! Let go of him, where are your manners?" said mum. Ezekiel's eyes went wide as he stared at my mum in shock. Finally Sligo freed himself from his grasp. He rolled his shoulders and dusted himself off before walking over to mum and putting his arm around her.

"Win? By any chance… is Cal your son?" asked Sligo, looking from her to me and back again.

"Yes, why? Have you guys met before?" asked mum. Sligo opened his mouth to say something, but I cut in.

"Mum, may I please speak to Ez outside for a minute?" I asked. Mum nodded her head. Ezekiel and I walked outside and I collapsed into the wall. Ezekiel was looking at me, a confused expression covering his face.

"So she'll fire me… but she'll go on a date with HIM?!" said Ezekiel.

"I… I am so screwed. Joshua looked surprised too, Sligo said he had a surprise for him this afternoon, but clearly he had no idea it had anything to do with dating my mum," I said, choking on the last few words.

"Crap. Now Sligo has full access to your house!" said Ezekiel. I shook my head in disbelief.

"Wait… I don't think he knew it was my house. He looked surprised when he saw me, and he sounded it when Joshua called my name. I think he thought this was just going to be a normal date," I said. Ezekiel nodded slowly.

"How long is he staying for, do you know?" he asked.

"Mum said he's having dinner with us. She wouldn't let me skip it. Wait! What if you stay as well?" I offered, but Ezekiel didn't look convinced.

"I don't think I'm going to be allowed, Cal. Especially not after 'attacking' her date," he said. I had one more idea left…

"Well… if she fired _you_ for 'kidnapping' me, she'd dump Sligo if she knew what he's done to me! What he has done makes what you did hardly worth talking about!" I said, getting worked up on the idea. Ezekiel nodded again, a smile growing on his face.

"Ok, that's a great idea! But I'm sorry, I have to run. Here's your wallet," said Ezekiel, passing me my wallet.

"Thanks. See you some other time?" I said as he jogged back to his car. He nodded to me before driving off, and then I was alone… the man who has attempted to murder me numerous times inside my house. Suddenly the front door opened, and Joshua stuck his head out.

"Cal, please, you have to believe me when I say I had no idea!" he said, coming over to stand by me.

"It's ok, I believe you," I said, kicking the ground in frustration at Sligo's ability to stuff everything in my life up. Just then the door opened again, and Gabbi came out.

"Guys, mum wants you back inside," she said. She turned to walk back inside. Joshua and I followed her in, but I was freaking out. Cautiously, I walked to the kitchen where mum was making dinner.

"Cal, would you please set the table?" asked mum. I nodded and went to the knives and forks drawer. I grabbed five forks and six knives, and when mum wasn't looking, I slipped one of the knives' into my pocket. Just in case.

I took them out to the table and laid them out, and then went back to the kitchen and did the same with the cups. I could hear Sligo's and Joshua's voices talking quietly in the direction of the lounge room, and Gabbi was sitting at the table already. Just then mum brought out a large pot, steaming with a delicious smell. But I was too scared to enjoy it. I was about to sit down to dinner… with Vulkan Sligo!

"Dinner!" called mum, and Joshua and Sligo came into the dining room. I took a seat next to Gabbi, and mum sat across from her. Sligo sat next to mum, across from me, and Joshua took a seat at the end of the table, near Sligo and I.

We all dug into the creamy Pasta Carbonara in silence, everyone except mum feeling awkward. Finally mum broke the silence.

"So, Vulkan, what do you do for a living?" she asked. Joshua started choking on a mouthful of pasta, and I poured him a glass of water, smiling at my mum's choice in topic.

"Well… I'm a police officer," said Sligo, after a long pause. I couldn't help myself, I started laughing. He shot me a dirty look, and I tried to control myself. It was hard though, and when I looked at Gabbi I saw she was grinning at me too. Joshua rubbed his temples and mum shook her head in disapproval.

"Cal, please! So Vulkan, how do you like your job?" said mum.

"Oh, I believe he loves it very much, mum!" I said, still smiling. Saying what I was about to could get me killed, but then again, he wanted me dead anyway. "In fact, I think he loves it so much, that he commits the crimes himself because there aren't enough criminals to go after!" That was it, Gabbi burst out laughing and Joshua's face cracked to a smile, which he quickly tried to hide again.

"Callum! Stop that!" said mum, getting angry at my behavior. But when I looked up at Sligo again, he was smiling as if what I said humored him.

"No, Win, let him continue, this is good," he said, almost laughing. I wasn't sure where he was going with this, and I raised an eyebrow at him. There was a long pause before I shrugged my shoulders.

"Nah, I'm good for now," I said, picking up my fork again and eating more of my dinner. We finished the meal in silence, and I was sitting on the edge of my seat waiting for mum to say we could get up and leave.

It seemed like eternity before she finally nodded to me, and I leapt up and ran straight to my room. A few minutes later there was a nock at my door.

"Who is it?" I asked.

"Cal, could I please come in?" asked Gabbi. I walked over to the door and opened it for her. She skipped in and sat down on my bed, dangling her legs over the edge. I closed the door before going over and sitting next to her.

"What's wrong?" I asked, sensing something was troubling her.

"Why'd you say those things at dinner? They were funny, but I think Sligo is really mad now, even if he doesn't act it," she said.

"I don't know," I admitted. "I guess I was just trying to make him crack. If he had a go at me, maybe mum would believe me."

"But Cal, if Sligo had a go at you, chances are he'd kill you," said Gabbi. I saw tears spring into her eyes. She didn't want me to risk my life like that.

"Ok, I'll try not to get him mad… unless Ezekiel is next to me, yeah?" I said, smiling at her.

"But mum fired Ezekiel, remember?" she said. How could I forget?

"Yes, but Sligo doesn't have to know that…" I said.

"Too late." I spun around to see Sligo leaning against the door frame. He must be getting quieter; I hadn't heard him walk up, or even open my door! "Cal, I need to have a word with you… _alone_," he said, implying that Gabbi should leave. She looked up at me hesitantly, and I could see uncertainty in her eyes.

Using the position I was sitting in as an advantage, I turned toward Gabbi and let the knife from my pocket catch the light. She saw the tiny flash and looked down as I hoped.

"It's ok, I'll be fine," I said. She smiled at me before standing up and walking out past Sligo. He closed the door behind her and I slid the knife back into my pocket. But I kept my hand near it just in case.

"So Win fired Ezekiel, hey?" said Sligo, leaning against the wall casually. "What for?" he asked. I shrugged my shoulders.

"She found out he used to work for Toecutter," I said, trying to sound like it was just a basic piece of information. Sligo nodded, and I suddenly felt really uneasy.

"You keep a lot of things from her, don't you?" he asked. I decided to pretend he never spoke.

"What do you want?" I asked him. He exhaled heavily, realizing I wasn't going to play his little game.

"Why'd you tell Joshua? What reason did you have to tell him what I do when he isn't around?" asked Sligo. I glared at him.

"What reason did you have to keep it from him? He's your son; doesn't he have a right to know?" I said, remembering at the last minute not to let my voice rise too high in case mum hears. Suddenly I realized that Sligo looked defeated.

"Because if he had known… he would've told his mother. And if she knew, I wouldn't ever get to see him again," he said, his voice much quieter now. "It was bad enough when she found my gun… I told her I was a cop, but she got mad that I had kept that from her. We had a fight, but tried to put it behind us for Joshua's sake. Then one day she cracked. She took Josh and moved house, not even telling me where she was going… I didn't see Josh at all for ten years, until his mother went broke and she couldn't look after him." We sat in silence for a while, as I tried to work out how to react to this new information, and to Sligo's decision to tell me something like this…

"So you lied so you wouldn't loose him… but then you lost him anyway..?" I said, finally. Sligo gave a sort of half-laugh.

"Wasn't my best idea…" he said. "But speaking of lies… what were you talking about the other day at school? You claimed the other's lied to you about something..?" I hesitated, not sure whether to tell him or not. One look at his intense gaze made up my mind.

"They said it was a dream. Three months after getting out of your place, I woke up from a coma… the coma _you_ put me in. They didn't want me to be in fear the rest of my life, so they told me that rather than Viper grab me that night, it had been Boges. Then I fainted, hit my head, and I was out for a week. They said you were dead again; that you never got out of the bog. They didn't count on me seeing you again," I told him.

"You were out of it for three months?" asked Sligo. I nodded. "Teaches you to disobey me…" he said, grinning mischievously at me. I managed a weak smile back before talking again.

"What do you want with Kelvin?" I asked him. His smile dropped; he thought I didn't know.

"What do you mean?" he said, hoping to trick me into thinking Kelvin was dead.

"I know you have him doing things for you, and that you're still beating him up. What do you want from him overall?" I persisted.

"Actually, with the way things are going, I'm going to have to cancel the deal I had with him and make a different one with you," said Sligo. Instantly I had a bad feeling about this. The last deal I had with him involved me betraying Winter, then breaking the deal with Sligo and getting myself severely beaten.

"What's the deal?" I asked hesitantly.

"I know this is not what you want to hear, but I love your mum," he began. And he was right; I _didn't_ want to hear it! "And you love staying alive knowing I'm not trying to kill you, if I'm not mistaken…"

"No, that's correct," I said, still wondering what he wanted. He smiled at me before continuing.

"If you put up with your mum and I dating… I will leave you be. But if you stuff things up for me…" He came right over to me, towering above me like a monstrous shadow ready to attack. I reassured myself by feeling for the knife in my pocket. "I will kill you," he said, finally retreating. He stood there and held his hand out to me.

"Deal," I said after a few minutes, but I refused to shake his hand. He nodded to me and finally walked out. As soon as the door clicked shut behind him, I collapsed into my bed and fell asleep.

…

I sat up straight with a start, sweat covering my face again. It was the same nightmare about when I was with Sligo that week. Dogs, mice, screams and shouts. Then there's a gunshot and it's over.

Except this time it was slightly different. After the gunshot I heard an earsplitting scream from Kelvin, and I picture him lying there in a pool of blood as I'm rushed to the hospital…

I tried to shake the dream from my thoughts, and I looked over at Ryan's sleeping body. I smiled, stood up and got ready for a shower. I was halfway down the hall to the bathroom when I realized an important detail.

Ryan wasn't supposed to be here!

I ran back to my room and took another look. But it couldn't be! He was spending the night at Sally's place! There he was, lying on his bed, covered by his sheets. I walked over to wake him up and ask him why he was here, when I jumped back in fright.

The sleeping figure stirred. He sat up slowly, rubbing his eyes. When he noticed I was staring at him he opened his mouth to speak, but I cut him off.

"Joshua?!" I said. But I didn't give him a chance to explain. I bolted back out to the hallway and downstairs. I rounded the corner to the kitchen, straight into Sligo! He grabbed my shirt to stop me, and I tried to catch my breath.

"Whoa, slow down there! You alright?" he asked. Things started to come back into focus again, and I noticed mum making toast and looking at me with concern. I pulled out of Sligo's grip surprisingly easily, as if he didn't care if he let go. Then I remembered our chat last night and figured he probably _didn't_ care.

"Why are you here again?" I asked. Mum bit her lip, casting a hesitant glance at Sligo. Finally she turned back to me.

"Vulkan and Joshua spent the night. Their car wouldn't start, so I invited them to stay," she explained. Suddenly I felt really queasy, and had something important I needed to say…

"You slept on the couch… didn't you?" I asked Sligo. He laughed, nodding at me.

"Don't worry, Cal, I slept on the couch," he said. I felt slightly better. Just then, Joshua came into the kitchen. His eyes scanned the room before settling on me and Sligo.

"Um… Cal, could I please speak to you in the other room?" he asked. I looked at mum and Sligo, then back to him. I nodded and followed him out.

"What is it?" I asked as we sat down on the couch. He appeared to be anxious; unsure whether he was safe saying anything.

"Dad was really mad last night. After dinner we talked, and he said to stay down here and help out your mum. He seemed distracted as he walked upstairs, and I could hear it in his voice that he was annoyed at what you said," said Joshua. "What did he say last night? I have a feeling it was you he was going to see…"

I sighed, remembering how Sligo had said he loved my mum. It was completely revolting, but I had to go along with it for him to stay off my back. I also remembered how he spoke of losing his son; a side of him I'd never seen before.

"Nothing much," I said plainly. "But… uh… don't mention anything I've told you about to your mum, ok?"

"Why?" Joshua asked, tilting his head to the side in confusion. I paused for a moment, wondering how to tell him.

"Because it would seriously mess up your family," I said. He looked like he still didn't understand fully. I didn't even think about what I said next until the words left my lips. "It means a lot to your dad that she doesn't know."

"You boys going to get ready for school, or are you going to sit around talking all day?" The sound of Sligo's voice startled me. He was standing in the doorway of the kitchen, and I wondered how much of the conversation he heard. Joshua casted a quick glance at me before standing up and walking to the kitchen to organize breakfast.

I got up to follow him out and do the same when Sligo put his arm out and stopped me. He grabbed me by the shirt and pulled me back into the living room.

"Why?" he asked, pushing me into a chair. I didn't understand his question.

"Why what?" I asked, trying to keep my voice steady. He rolled his eyes, as if I were an idiot.

"Don't play dumb, Callum. I heard everything you said. Why did you say that to Joshua?" asked Sligo. His voice was firm, but quiet so mum and Joshua wouldn't hear. I shrugged my shoulders, unsure why I said that myself.

"I honestly have no idea…"


End file.
